12 ways to make money from your love of music

Making a living doing what you love is living the dream, right? Absolutely! But if you like music – and you can’t necessarily do it? Are you doomed to misery at an uninspired job, working weekends when you could be dancing the night away? No! There are many ways to make money from your love of music – not least while working from home! – and I just know that whatever your skill set, musician or not, there’s something here for you.

For music lovers

Are you more of a music appreciator than a music producer? Check out these jobs or side hustles that will let you work with your passion.

1. Music Streaming Customer Service with NexRep.

As a Music Streaming Customer Service Agent with NexRep, you will work with customers of Jay-Z’s streaming service, Tidal. Although this job directly interfaces you with the music industry, you’ll still help fellow music-lovers listen to them by handling email inquiries and resolving customer issues.

2. Music rating.

It won’t make you a lot of cash, but it’s a fun side hustle that will allow you to spend a little money and introduce you to new music artists! You can sign up on sites as a music rater Hit predictor, Music xrayAnd Research.fm. After you sign up and qualify as a rater, you simply listen to the music and give your honest feedback when asked. Each site’s exact process is different, but these processes often end in a small amount of money being made into gift cards.

3. Become a work-at-home agent with a ticket company.

Many musical artists tour and those who need to sell tour tickets and that The process requires a lot of support from ticketing agents to customer service to technical support. Look for remote work in this industry, such as with companies Live Nation or game time.

4. Remote work with music streaming services.

Streaming music online is a lucrative industry, and there’s room for you at the table! Keep your eyes peeled for positions with companies like Pandora or Spotify and more – for example, FlexJobs recently listed telecommuting jobs with Pandora in areas like social media, curator-programmer and customer support (just to name a few).

5. Teach it!

Even if you don’t play an instrument or carry tunes in a bucket, this can work for you. All you need is knowledge and a willingness to share it. If you can play an instrument, consider taking private lessons – there are no end of enthusiastic amateurs looking for affordable guitar lessons! You can offer these lessons in real life or through online lessons. You can even create an e-learning course that can become a tidy passive income for you: develop your classes on services like Skillshare or Udemy or on your website. If you’re a master of theory rather than practice, offering lessons online works for you too! Go independent as above. Or you can take the semi-traditional route of finding a distance education job with a college where you can teach the academic side of music.

6. Write it!

Perhaps you are better at sound than melody. If you’re not trying to be a songwriter, try becoming a freelance writer who specializes in music! You can become an expert in any number of ways, from studying music in school to interviewing industry professionals and consistently publishing music reviews. Whether you’re new to the music industry or an old hand, use your passion to monetize your writing: you can create a blog, sell articles to magazines, or find a staff writer position. Visit job boards like FlexJobs, Problogger Jobsor Journalism job And keep your eyes open for this writing opportunity.

7. Podcast!

So maybe you’re not particularly good at writing, but you have the gift of gab – it works for you too! People love to hear new things (besides epic music), especially in a world where most people spend a lot of time commuting somewhere else. Or work through endless gym sessions! You can come to their rescue by putting together your podcast. At its most basic level, all you need is a decent mic, a great subject, and some free recording software (eg audacity) on your computer. You can specialize in sharing the latest music news in a personable way, doing funny or engaging breakdowns of the hottest new music, or interviewing musicians (even if you start with local musicians waiting for their big break). The directions you can take a podcast are endless, and its scope to scale is great.

For music makers

Are you a musician trying to earn a work-at-home income? Even if you’re waiting to make it big, you can develop your skills and grow an early following today that will be your fan club tomorrow. This section is also for all you music producers, remixers, recording engineers and related professionals!

8. Start a YouTube channel.

Do you know how many music artists have been discovered through YouTube? All you need to know is that the list includes names like Justin Bieber, The Weeknd, Ed Sheeran and Pentatonix. You don’t need a fancy set-up or a high-end camera: all you need is musical talent and a desire to share it with the world. (Well, yes, and some form of camera and computer to create and upload your videos.) Your channel can grow and improve as you follow along, take advantage of video monetization, and this next item.

9. Sell your music online!

Whether you’re writing pop songs, doing some freestyles, making parody songs or composing instrumentals, there’s a market for your music! Putting your music up for sale requires access to some decent equipment and may even involve renting some studio time. However, you can use the following you’ve already built up online to crowdfund an EP and then publish your music through a service. Bandcamp.

10. Write music for others.

You can also build a successful freelance business as a music creator, be it as a composer or musician. The ways to build your business are endless – just like the list of industries you can work with. You might meet your next client after playing a live gig or sharing an original piece of music you’ve created on YouTube. You can write music for video games, jingles, podcasts, commercials, indie films or more. To get started on this track, consider offering your services through a platform like Fiverr

11. Record music for others.

If you’re not a big composer – or as an add-on to your music composition service – you can use your home studio and access to instruments (or music software if you don’t play) to record music for others. This freelance business grows like the one above and will depend on the type of job you are doing.

12. Produce music for others.

Many music artists out there need help shaping and refining their recorded sound, figuring out how to best produce their work, getting their recordings in shape for release, and everything from editing to remixing. If you have these skills, hire them out to musicians in need! You’ll generate an income, help other artists, and build professional relationships that can further develop your career. You can run this business through personal referrals, if you know the right people, or start on a platform like the fiver I mentioned above.

Are you ready to rock? Go out there and make the love of music work for you!